Bolton’s dedication pays off

By Ken Casellas

Jye Bolton was furious at the Showgrounds last Wednesday night when Claremont’s long-standing and much-loved physiotherapist Anthony McEvoy ordered him off the training track three-quarters of the way through the session.

At first he refused, after a verbal joust with McEvoy. But Macca insisted and finally Bolton reluctantly agreed to leave the training track. He had a steely look in his eye as he trudged off to the changerooms.

McEvoy did not want Bolton to continue working hard at training, the night before the powerful midfielder was due to take part in a light training session with the West Australian squad in preparation for Western Australia’s match against Tasmania at Bassendean Oval on Saturday. He didn’t want Bolton to over-prepare before the State match, a week before Claremont’s important fixture against West Perth at the Showgrounds.

Bolton’s insistence on training hard was typical of his dedication to improve himself as a footballer. His professionalism and intense work ethic is an object lesson to all young players.

It is this type of single-minded devotion which lifts a player above others. This determined and dedicated attitude is essential if an individual wants to fulfil his potential.

Therefore it came as no surprise that the high-achieving Bolton was the dominant player in WA’s crushing 134-point victory over Tasmania and the hard-running midfielder was a most worthy recipient of the Simpson Medal as WA’s best player.

He became the 14^th Claremont player to win a Simpson Medal, following in the footsteps of Sonny Maffina, John McIntosh, Graham Moss, Jim Krakouer, Gary Shaw, Peter Thorne (two), Ben Allan (three), Dale Kickett (two), Todd Ridley, Ian Richardson, Luke Blackwell, Beau Maister and Paul Medhurst.

Tigers fans will relish the opportunity next Saturday of watching Richardson, Maister and Bolton in action against West Perth, along with Ryan Neates and Darcy Cameron, who were wonderful contributors to WA’s win over Tasmania. Neates damaged a heel in the dying moments of the State match and it is hoped that this will not prevent him from lining up against the Cardinals.

Bolton’s focus on preparing for the State match was totally unbending. He clearly was in the zone as he concentrated solely on performing at his best.

His demeanour before the game against Tasmania reminded me of the behaviour of former champion Australian sportsmen George Barnes and Herb Elliott.

Both were casual, easy-going characters whose personalities changed completely in the final days before important events.

Barnes was a charming, ever-smiling person who thoroughly enjoyed his time sparring in the gym and taking long walks through the streets of London for a couple of weeks in his build-up for the Commonwealth welterweight title bout against young Welshman Brian Curvis at the Swansea Vetch Field in May 1960.

I travelled by train from London to Swansea with Barnes two days before the fight. On the trip his behaviour changed remarkably. Suddenly he was transformed as his total focus was on the fight. He snarled and growled and was generally quite unsociable.

For the record, Barnes, then 33 and in the twilight of his career, fought valiantly against the 22-year-old Curvis, who gained a points verdict after 15 gruelling rounds.

Three months later in Rome I experienced the transformation of Elliott as he prepared for the 1500m event at the Olympic Games. Always a relaxed and confident character, Herb suddenly became insular and totally self-absorbed in the days leading up to the big race.

To this day Elliott’s magnificent victory in the 1500m remains my favourite sporting memory. After bursting to the front with two laps of the stadium to travel he careered away from his rivals and won the gold medal by 20 metres and a margin of 2.6sec. from France’s Michel Jazy, with Hungarian Istvan Rozsavolgyi in third place in 3min. 35.6sec. which smashed his own world record.

I am not comparing Bolton with Barnes or Elliott, but the 24-year-old Bolton’s fierce determination to perform at his best certainly revived some wonderful memories.